Wender·Vista
Mont Ventoux
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileFrance
in Provence, alone above the Vaucluse plain

Mont Ventoux

— — a white summit no glacier ever made.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.
— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand
— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines
— Beside the kettle, a 12-inch propped
— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall
— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround
— a note from the studio

“The Giant of Provence, rising on its own above the lavender plain of the Vaucluse. The summit is bare white limestone scree, so pale from the valley it reads as snow even in August. The road switchbacks up from Bédoin through oak, then beech, then nothing but stone and wind. The Tom Simpson memorial sits about a kilometre below the top. — from the studio

from the studio
Mont Ventoux
— bring it home

Mont Ventoux, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?
One tile — square or rectangle.
How big?
the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand
6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb
Surface finish
A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.
How it sits
A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.
$58
Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.
— size
6 × 6 in
15 cm
— weighs
1.6 lb
solid in the hand
— surface
ceramic, hand-finished
art rests beneath a thin glossy finish
— from
Knoxville, TN
our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies
— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Mont Ventoux

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.
— the place

Mont Ventoux rises to 1,909 metres in the Vaucluse department of Provence, about 20 kilometres northeast of Carpentras. It stands alone above the surrounding plain, with no neighbouring peak of comparable height, which gives it the nickname the Giant of Provence. The summit is a bare ridge of weathered white limestone scree; the lower slopes carry oak, then beech and fir, before the treeline gives out near 1,600 metres. The mountain was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1990.

— the air

The summit is one of the windiest places in France: gusts above 200 km/h are recorded on the meteorological tower most years, with a record near 320 km/h in 1967. The Mistral pours down the Rhône valley and breaks against the ridge; on still days from the top the eye reaches the Alps to the east and the Mediterranean to the south. The bare white scree above the treeline is not snow but exposed Cretaceous limestone, scoured down by wind and frost over centuries.

— the visit

Three paved roads climb the mountain, from Bédoin in the south, Malaucène in the north and Sault in the east. The Bédoin ascent is the one the Tour de France uses: 21.4 kilometres at an average gradient of 7.5 percent, climbed by the Tour fifteen times since 1951. The road is usually open from May through October and closed by snow in winter. A small stone cairn about a kilometre below the summit marks where the British cyclist Tom Simpson died on the climb in 1967.

— where
France · Vaucluse, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
— elevation
1,909 m · 6,263 ft
— position
44.1736° N · 5.2783° E
— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.
14 km S
Bédoin
base village
20 km SW
Carpentras
provincial town
55 km SW
Avignon
Rhône city
N
Mont Ventoux
Bédoin
Carpentras
Avignon
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Mont Ventoux — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

The summit reaches 1,909 metres, or about 6,263 feet. It stands alone above the Vaucluse plain in Provence, with no neighbouring peak of comparable height, which is why it is called the Giant of Provence.

The top is bare Cretaceous limestone scree, weathered to a pale white by centuries of wind and frost. From the valley below the brightness reads as snow even in August, when the air at the base is well above 30°C.

The Tour de France has climbed it fifteen times since 1951. The Bédoin ascent runs 21.4 kilometres at an average 7.5 percent gradient, and the British cyclist Tom Simpson died on the climb in 1967.

On 26 April 1336. The poet Francesco Petrarca described the ascent in a letter to Dionigi di Borgo San Sepolcro, and the climb is often cited as the first recorded ascent of a mountain for the view alone.

Geologically it belongs to the outer Provençal Alps, but it stands isolated from the main range. Its dramatic standalone profile above the Rhône-side plain is what makes it visually distinct from any Alpine summit.

The summit roads from Bédoin, Malaucène and Sault are usually open from May through October. Snow closes the upper sections through winter, and reopening dates depend on the year's melt.

— about the piece in your home

Yes. The Voynich palette holds the pale limestone summit and the lavender-blue light of the Vaucluse plain. A Small or Medium with a studio note carries well for a cyclist who has climbed the mountain or hopes to.

It settles into Provençal-modern, Alpine-modern, and Mediterranean-warm rooms. The white summit and slate-blues ground a limewashed plaster wall, lift a walnut shelf, and sit comfortably beside linen and dried lavender.

It reads in that direction. The pale stone and indigo palette is the family designers are pulling into mountain-modern interiors right now, alongside raw oak, undyed wool and blackened steel. It anchors a stair landing well.

A single Large carries a standard sofa or console. For a wider wall a 4-tile Mural reads as the view from the Bédoin road; a 9-tile Mural turns the wall into the summit. Measure your wall before choosing.

Yes, in the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and tolerate humidity, which suits a kitchen splashback or a bathroom wall. The Glossy finish is for framed wall art in dry rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth with a little water is enough. Skip abrasive pads and ammonia-based sprays. The colour lives in the ceramic surface, so a damp wipe brings it back without dulling the finish.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to Wender Studios in Knoxville, Tennessee. The work is curated by Reid Wender and hand-finished in-house. No licensing, no third-party stock.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.